Rock Mountain Man (Men on a Mission Book 6) by Kate Gilead

Author:Kate Gilead [Gilead, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2019-08-09T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

Zoey

After Rock loads up the heavy portable battery and my small bag of laundry into his truck, we make the short trip up-mountain to his place.

As soon as we pull up in front of the house, a huge black dog with sharply-cut ears and yellow eyes comes bounding around the back of the house, the fur on its ruff standing up. It lets out a couple of short, deep barks, then, the ears go back and its body turns into a wiggle-machine as it recognizes the truck.

“That’s Bruce,” Rock says, as he parks the vehicle and turns it off. “My Dad’s dog. His bark is worse than his bite.” He turns to look at me. “You’re not scared of dogs, are you?”

“Nope,” I answer. “The only thing I’m scared of is Izzy.”

Rock chuckles. “Okay, well, you should know that this dog is a Mastiff-mix of some kind. Part Presa Canario, part English Mastiff, we think. Dad rescued him from a fighting ring in Vancouver. That’s why his ears are shaped like that. They crop them when they’re puppies. And dock their tails, too.”

“Yeah, I’ve seen some dogs like that. Why exactly do they crop their ears?”

Outside Rock’s door, Bruce begins bouncing excitedly as he waits for Rock to come out of the truck, his big head comically appearing and disappearing through the window.

“They say it’s to prevent injury to floppy ears during a fight. Personally, I think that’s bull. Maybe they think it makes the dog look meaner. Who knows. It’s stupid, since these dogs are going to get injured in the ring anyway. Often, fatally.”

“Oh my God. But…I thought there were laws against docking dog’s tails. Why would they allow people to mutilate an animal’s ears?”

“Allow? It’s not allowed. Dog-fighting rings are themselves illegal. These people are criminals. They don’t follow the law. To them, it’s about money.”

“Geez! That’s one thing I never even heard of before, dog-fighting rings. Making dogs fight…for money. Betting?”

Rock nods soberly. “Betting, breeding and more. People can be shitty, can’t they? Anyhow, these dogs can be scary. Bruce here won all his fights, which is why he’s still alive. Dad bought him from his owner for a pretty penny after seeing him chained in a yard every day for about a year. Sometimes, the poor guy was still bleeding.”

“Oh my God! It was good of your Dad to take him in.”

“Yeah. Brucie’s such a good boy. You’ll see. The thing is, though? These dogs can be pretty…well, dominant. Fearless. Very devoted to family but naturally, very suspicious and reserved with strangers. Bruce likes to take his time getting to know people. The best thing to do with a dog like that is…”

“Ignore him,” I interrupt, grinning. “Let him come to me when he’s comfortable.”

“Clever girl,” Rock says approvingly, then opens his door and jumps out. “Bruce, you rotten scoundrel,” he mock-scolds the dog, whose excited panting is interspersed with canine whines and moans. “Let yourself out of the house again, huh? You old

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